Notes / Commercial Description:
Bolt Cutter is a cellarable barley wine with an ABV of 15%. Dry-hopped with a mountain of Cascade hops, it’s balanced by a malty sweetness and spicy complexity, resulting from barrel aging some of it in bourbon barrels, some in maple syrup-bourbon barrels and some not at all (standard fermentation only). We’ve allowed the beer to mature in bottles and kegs since July so that it would be perfect for its release next month. Bolt Cutter pours a deep copper color and is best sampled at different temperatures to allow the flavors to unfold.

Pours a hazy dark orange with a foamy khaki head that settles to a film on top of the beer. Small dots form around the glass on the drink down. Smell is of malt, brown sugar, and citrus zest. Taste is much the same with a very sweet flavor and a mild hop bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a lower level of carbonation with a slightly crisp and medium bodied mouthfeel. Overall, this is a good beer but I think it tastes better than it smells.

one of the best barleywines of the year. not cheap, but damn good. it pours a sticky honey color with just a finger or two of white lace on top. the nose is crazy, sweet and strong, like a homemade spirit or something, its got notes of scotch, toffee, brown sugar, and orange peel. that first thing I think of when I taste this is, wow, if gummy bears were liquid, this is what it would taste like. its sort of got that artificial fruit flavor sweetness from all the malt, but it works here, and the alcohol is just ridiculous, especially when this gets up to room temperature, its downright hot. not much hops in here that I can pick out, but a lot of big flavors competing for attention, so its probably just as well. mouthfeel is thick and gooey, not much carbonation, which makes this a slow sipper. the alcohol content makes sharing the bottle must, as does the sugar, which gets tiring. still, this is what a barleywine should be, and founders has pulled this off wonderfully.

This poured out as a reddish orange color with a thin white head on top. The head settles just leaving some scattered spots on top and some very thin lacing on the glass. The smell of the beer is potent, very big orange citrus notes here as well as some earthy hops and plenty of ethanol. The smell almost reminds me of a cleaning product of some kind but at the same time it still smells good. The taste of the beer gives of some massive malt characteristics, it's boozy and sweet, elements of caramel and apple in there some maple and some bitter hops as well. The mouthfeel of the beer is medium to heavy, it's smooth and oily, lightly carbonated. Overall it's a big beer, lots of nice things going on in this one. Might be interesting to have again someday once it's been aged for a little. This beer has a lot of complexity and is very good. Definitely worth trying.

When turning fifteen years old, you either go big or go home. Founders charges into triple nickle territory with this massive American barleywine with a balanced, complex, and strong palate throughout.

Much like brandy, the tawny caramel beer shows good clarity with amber and orange highlights. A swirl of the glass shows as much brandy legging as it does beery froth. Carbonation patiently layers the surface with off white creme and never brings lacing into the conversation.

A strong whiff of bourbon and caramel gather in the nose, along side of hearty-sweet notes of brown sugar, pecans, toasted almonds, and maple. Fruit character accompanies the sweet scent with cherries, apricots, grapefruit, and oranges. Pine and vegetal hop notes allow for an earthen balance to the fruit and sweetness. My mind keeps returning to notions of peanut brittle, fruitcake, and bourbon.

Equally strong, a thin syrup and honey taste satisfies the sweet tooth while a quick rebuttal of citrusy hops rise to nearly balance the sweet. Sharp hop bitterness grows alongside of the emerging alcohol to eventually control the finish over that of malt and fruit. Marmalade, peppery alcohol and cherries are the lingering taste even as the beer turns to resinous pine-like bitterness to finish.

Full bodied, however the beer shows incredible dryness, for both the good and bad. There's enough sweetness to become a carriage for carbonation that provides creamy textures early on. But the malty-dry middle palate allows the immense alcohols to dominate the finish, making the hops seem harsh and the esters tasting like children's cough syrups. Moderately fusal, you must live the sheer taste of ethanol to fully appreciate this barleywine.

With it's overall hot temperament, the beer seems "green" or under-matured. And like many other strong beers of Founders, I'm sure this anniversary ale is destined for greatness with proper cellar conditions. But right now the malt richness doesn't properly balance the fifteen percent strength, the hops are raw- as if it's trying too much to garner imperial IPA-type taste.

Appearance: Pours a clear amber with a very modest head that quickly fritters away; many leggy strands of lacing, however

Smell: Boozy maple pecan, with caramel and pine undertones

Taste: Maple, pecan and caramel flavors, up front, with the ABV powerfully introducing itself in the middle; piney hops remain, to some extent (despite the age on the bottle), but the finish is much like the start

Mouthfeel: Full bodied with hardly any carbonation

Overall: Interesting concept but it just didn't pull through; there are lots of better barleywines out there

Bottle: Poured a clear light copper color ale with a medium size foamy head with good retention and some lacing. Aroma of residual sugar notes with light toffee and caramel notes is very nice. Taste is also dominated by residual sugar notes, with some light toffee notes and light caramel notes. Body is about average with good carbonation and light warming alcohol. I was expecting sugar bomb but while this is still a sweet beer I thought it had enough attenuation for the style.

In a highball glass, this beer pours a tawny brown, frothy foam around the edges and a decent skim across the surface that lasts for awhile.

Sticky sweet, heavily malty aroma with a significant dose of dried fruit. Pretty average for the style, nothing out of the ordinary.

Flavors are smooth and malt driven, plenty of dried fruit, some apricot and sultana. Sticky sweet though not cloying. Smooth feel with a fairly well disguised abv. Medium to full body, with a light level of carbonation. Fairly straightforward barley wine, enjoyable enough, though glad I was able to pay less than retail. Happy 14th to Four Moon... here's to many more.

I had this on-tap at the Capone's Black Friday Event. Served in a tasting snifter.

Appearance: The beer pours a clear reddish amber color with a layer of off whit head. The head fades to a ring around the glass and leaves some lacing.

Smell: Right off the bat I notice the strong alcohol burn. I'm getting an aggressive hop presence along with some dark fruit. Warm and full of citrus peel hops.

Taste: I would say that this beer could use some age. Quite bitter and very hoppy. Citrus peel hops are backed up by some sweet brown sugar, dark fruit, and maple syrup notes. The finish is very bitter. There is a hot alcohol burn throughout the whole sip.

Mouthfeel: The body is just on the syrupy side of medium with fluffy, tingly carbonation and a dry finish.

Overall: I thought this beer was too young. I think it could be fantastic in a year or two. The sweet notes were very good, but they need time to come to the front some more.

Great to get this beer,one of my favorite breweries from the home state.Poured into an imperial nonic a deep burnt orange with a thinner but tightley formed off white head atop.A mix of alcohol dipped dark fruits and cake in the nose,not much hop presence,almost like a CHRISTmas fruit cake to me.Sweet with alot of fruitiness on the palate,raisin/prue to go along with alcohol dipped cherries with a decent earthy dryness and leafy hops in the finish.It's big and chewey and the drying hops seem to come more into play as I drink more,this is all of the 15% it says it is.Iam going to bed early tonight.

Shared bottle. Very high ABV cannot be hidden. While I'm not hit in the face with the full 15%, this is, nonetheless, a bit too boozy for me. The high ABV comes in a very flavorful brew, which suggests various fruits and fruit brandy. Excellent hop/malt balance.

T: The taste starts out very sweet with flavors of caramel, brown sugar, vanilla and bourbon. Then a significant alcohol stings quickly follows as you would expect from a beer with 15.00% ABV. The malt character is hearty and there’s a mild but complementary hops presence creating a very good balance for such strong and sweet beer. The after-taste is slightly sweet.

Slightly hazy ruby-copper pour with a thick ringlet of white foam; decent retention and a bit of lacing. Aroma was sweet and malty, toffee and butterscotch, and a hint of naphtha-like booze. Taste was pretty nice, but seemed to fade after the first couple sips for some reason. More malty goodness, toffee, butterscotch, dried maraschino cherries, some boozy heat, and a markedly bitter hop finish. The toffee sweetness faded as it warmed, otherwise my taste rating would possibly step up a notch. This wasn't quite a full-bodied beer, but on the upper end of medium, fairly mellow considering it's still pretty young, but will probably be a nice sipper in a year or two.

This was on tap a while back at Holy Hound in York, PA enjoyed chilled in a snifter.

The color and clarity are both great a brilliant copper/bronze shade with visible carbonation and thick cream cap of light beige with tight bead and nice lace formation. The smell is very good, but comes off very hop forward and high alcohol in the nose which is appropos to the style but not especially complex so just above average accept it has some nice hop pine scents. The feel is good well above average in that it is 15% and feels like 10% tops it has hop oiliness and high bitterness level but it is relatively dry for the style making it taste similar to a Double IPA with asservtive bite and pretty hard not to have alcohol effect the palate at the abv listed but it does a decent job of concealing with some moderate carbonation.

This tastes intense! as the name implies it does not tread lightly and it means business -lots of sharp hops with piney, peppery bite and slight caramel and nutty dry malt to underscore with lots of alcohol with some fruitiness on the palate. I really dug this and it is so fresh you can't help but wonder if the intense octane of a 15% can mellow with cellaring, but the hops are very tasty so I would not hold on to this. I enjoyed how smooth it was for there aren't many 15% beers I have liked as much as this, A great tribute to 15 years in business -keep up the good work Founders!

T: Brown sugar, pine in spades, a touch warming booze & woody hops up front along with dryness. Pineapple & grapefruit as this warms with a touch of cakeyness & more pine, just a hint of fruit cake there as well. Finishes with pineyness, backed up by treacle, dryness & pineapple upside down cake (like the kind they had in MREs) , plus a little booze sting

MF: Much chewyness, fairly firm carbonation, skews very hoppy

I liked this, would love to age some, but I suspect all the hoppyness would fade quickly. A sipper. Pricey, but I didn't feel cheated

Fifteen great years from Founders. Cheers! This celebration pours a mostly clear auburn topped by a finger of light khaki foam. The nose comprises grapefruit zest, sweet caramel, a hint of vanilla, pine resin, and a decent dose of booze. The taste brings in more of the same, with the alcohol merging with the citrusy hops, boosting them to the heavens. The sweetness of the caramel (joined by what may or may not be a kiss of bourbon/maple) remains intact, but it's beginning to clash a bit with the boozy hops, which leave a chlorophyll-laden aftertaste that lingers for a bit. The body is a hefty medium, with a light moderate carbonation and a dry finish. Overall, a decent anniversary b-wine, but one that's clearly way too hot at the moment, and one whose overly-expressive hops kill any real sense of the barrels and of balance. It's not really all that bad, but there are plenty better barleywines out there, especially for the money.

A: Poured a very nice orange color with a one finger off-white head with great retention, lasting for the majority of the time it took to drink it. Sticky lacing forms down the sides.

S: Wow, surprisingly hoppy, lots of pine and citrus upfront with some caramel, toffee, and oak that come forward. Lots of vanilla comes out in the middle. It was rather resiny with a little bit of alcohol at the end.

T: More hops upfront, very piney mixed with some grapefruit. The hops transition to some caramelized sugar, vanilla, bourbon, oak, and a little bit of maple.

M: Medium to full bodied with moderate carbonation. Slightly boozy, but it doesn't really impede the drinkability.

O: As someone that isn't a huge barleywine fan, I liked this beer quite a bit, probably because of the barrel aging. Surprised at how hop forward it was, but I am sure this will fade with time. Great beer to have for thanksgiving dinner.

From 11/28/12 notes. Had this on tap at the Blind Tiger VSK event in NYC. Had a sip from a friend and then an 8 oz. pour.

a - Pours an amber-clear reddish color with one inch of white head and low carbonation evident. Looks as expected.

s - Smells of bready malts, bourbon, oak, toasted malts, alcohol , caramel malts, toffee, and light vanilla. Good, but much more bready than I was expecting, and a decent amount of alcohol.

t - Tastes of bready malts, toasted malts, graham cracker, bourbon, oak, vanilla, caramel malts, dark fruits, toffee, alcohol, butterscotch, and biscuit. Again, tons of bread and toasted malts, but more dark fruit and caramel here than the nose. A small step up from the nose for me, but the alcohol is still there too.

o - Overall I found this to be a good BA barleywine, but not great. While it does not taste liek it is necessarily 15% ABV, it is strong and the alcohol is there. Tons of bready and toasted malts, and some nice bourbon, I have one bottle of this and will hold onto it for a year or two to see if it mellows out a little bit. Good but not as good as some of the other Founders special beers.

Thanks...sorta. The beer appears a who cares irrelevant hue with a it doesn’t matter head. The aroma brings a please don’t scent with a shitload of unnecessary hops and huge boozy sweetness. Just because you can doesn’t mean you should. Tons of malt and hops thrown together with no sensitivity or balance. Overwhelming alcohol and sweetness. What a disappoinment. No thanks.

I hope this beer kicks it up a bit after warming. As it is right now, it's somewhat one-dimensional. It's nice and smooth with good malty tones. Bit of an alcohol burn on things. Overall, it's pretty nice. Too bad I don't have another to lay down to see how it ages. Regardless, happy anniversary Founders. Here's to the next 15 years.

Aawwweee shit. Another fouders big bottle series. As luck would have it, local advocate of beer Orangesol tipped me off to a place that had bottles for sale. This was my first time purchasing one of these "backstage?" 750's with no bottle limit or secret handshake at the door granting me access to such a privilege.

I opened this at a tasting I hosted this past weekend that was stout themed. (Im a douche like that.) Color me excited for this: wearing my bold cutter hat, founders shirt, bolt cutter boobie tassels and matching underoos. Ok, none of that is true except for the tasting and opening part. Poured into a tulip, the brew appears a hazed copper orange with 2 fingers of frothy yellowish tan head. Patchy webs of lace stick to the glass and display solid powers of retention. There is ruby clarity noted when held to the light along with a lighter yellowish coloring around the edges.

The nose has fruity, citrus, floral and pine aromatics primarily centric to hop charcter. This is pretty much what the entire focus of the nose is about with hints of herbs and a bit of catty appeal. There is some solvent alcohol cutting through with a mild tingle of accenting caramel sticky candy sweetness.

The taste is all about the hops with a huge solvent to fusel alcohol inclusion. Focusing on the hop character it is fruity, floral, pine-like, herbal and a bit catty. Did I mention solvent booze is readily apparent numbing the tongue more with each sip? Hints of caramel grain attempt to poke through but with no residual sweetness. Ample to excessive bitterness with alcohol running rampant. Almost like mandrin oranges and tannic dry woodiness are the last things noted.

This is medium bodied with a modest amount of carbonation. It has a big alcohol impact and hoppiness. This is like vodka with a splash of resinous DIPA added. Aging would be wonderful to tone the booze down but having the hops fade would leave this pretty boring and lifeless. It will be interesting to see how this developes but you wont catch me buying any more of this.

Pours a slightly hazy burnished copper with a huge frothy whit head that persists forever. Aromas of sweet sugary malt, brown sugar, pine and earthy hops with a touch of alcohol and a hint of dried fruit. The flavor is sweet rocket fuel. Sweet sugar, molasses, prunes and cherries with a solid shot of earthy pine hops. The alcohol is present enough to remind you that this is a big beer, but I've had more obtrusive alcohol presence in smaller beers before. There's a solid shot of hop bitterness I would assume to counter the huge malt bill that this must have. Medium to thick body with a moderate level of carbonation, and a sweet syrupy resinous lightly hot mouthfeel. I enjoyed sipping on this for most of the night. It is a touch hot, maybe that will mellow with time, but I enjoyed it.